Christmas Gifts

Happy New Years Eve!  We are having a black and gold party at our house tonight with music and BBQ.  You can tell who chose the food!  ;) Should be a fun time and I'll post about it in 2014!

I debated about this post looking bad but I did want to remember what we received for our first Christmas together.  Obviously we loved spending time with family and giving to others more than we did receiving anything but nonetheless, here are some of our gift highlights!

Kevin's parents gave me this Tocca collection of travel size perfumes.  If you haven't ever tried Tocca, you're missing out.  My love of Tocca started from my friend Lindsey!  She wore Tocca Florence when I visited her in Dallas many years ago and I ran out and got it immediately when I returned.   

They also gave me a Sephora gift card and I was able to get some new makeup.  I hadn't since before our wedding.  Another favorite in my stocking at Kevin's parent's house was the Mac Viva Glam IV lip glass.  And you should see this scarf that his Mama picked out at a shop in town.  I have already worn it!

This was something I've wanted for a long time....a yard sign with our address.  I CANNOT wait to get this up in our yard.  And no this is not ours...you really think I'm going to post our address!?!  Haha!  It's going to look super classy.  Thank you G's!

My parents had a couple pictures framed to match the same frame, matting and beading around the picture as another one I have from my brother's wedding.  Truly treasured piece and it will go in our living room...when we get furniture.

Speaking of furniture...my parents also gave us this table.  It's a GORGEOUS antique and this picture doesn't do it justice.  The shell detail on top is icing on the cake.  Thankfully since we rented a large car to go to Maryland in, we were able to bring this baby home with us!

New Tervis tumblers!  Kevin and I got personalized big daddy tumblers.  His has a John Deere on it and mine has a Wolf on it for NC State.  We love them from our nieces in Pawleys Island!  Mom and Dad also gave me these tumblers with our monogram on them.  I have some with my old initials that I will still use but it's fun to see a G in the middle now! ;)

Kevin's parents also got me these seahorse Vineyard Vines lazy pants.  I'm obsessed.  This is my 4th pair because they are THAT comfortable.

A steamer!  Thank you Mother Dearest for making sure our clothes look good and I won't have to go to the dry cleaners every other day.

Let's get down to the exciting stuff.  My parents gave Kevin a hedge trimmer and I never thought I'd be so excited.  This thing has already transformed our backyard bushes.  We have SO many bushes in our yard that require constant trimming and this thing is amazing.  He also got a hose.  And sunglasses.  And a couple new VV shirts.  And a remote control car.  He's fancy!

I love seeing what you all received too so please post.  I will admit, the older I've gotten, I really enjoy watching other people open gifts we give them, more than receiving.  Do you all feel the same?  But we are SO thankful for a HUGE Christmas.  So this is what it's like with two families?!! 

Final Christmas Wrap Up!

Let's start with Monday the 23rd.  We went to family dinner that night at Jenni and Frank's house.  I talk about how pretty their home is every year.  It's on the water and simply stunning.  Frank made the best crab balls for appetizer.  Kevin doesn't get those in Carolina! ;)

 Look at her caroler collection.  She had more of them on her mantle.

We do a gift exchange and we ended up with an Amazon card this year!

Our every year picture in the same spot.  Kevin got added to it this year.  It was really fun having him home for Christmas.  We've never spent one together while dating or engaged.  We just always felt it was right to be with our own families until we were married.

Our lil family!  We love our Mills!

Mills and the Polar Express Train didn't get along well.  It was so funny!  He went nuts over it!

Christmas Eve consisted of doing errands, making the luminaries, visiting with all of the neighborhood and going to church for the 10:30pm service.  

Christmas Day!  Santa came!

Bow tie boys!

Santa left something for Mills in a bag that had a picture of him as a baby! 

Kevin's big highlights were a hedge trimmer for our yard and a new pair of sunglasses among a gazillion other things.  He got spoiled!

My parents gave us a side table for our living room and a framed print from our wedding.  I'll have to show you all pictures of these soon....they're both stunning.  Kevin gave me a new pair of Lilly Travel pants and a gorgeous inch pearl inch pearl necklace.  Sadly or maybe not so sad, I already have one so it went back.  We are going to do something for the house instead.  I really don't NEED anything.

Every year we have the breakfast casserole and a cinnamon bun for Christmas breakfast.  Dad made bloody mary's this year too!

Mills getting talked to by Nannie!

More gifts for Millsy!

Christmas night we went to an old family friend's of my parents.  We went there last year too.  This year Joe's fiance, Taylor was there which was super fun to get to know her better!  They get married in June!

They view of the Wicomico River from her house is gorgeous!

She served beef wellington, twice baked potatoes, brussel sprouts, carrots and the most amazing sweet potato pie with a marshmallow meringue.  We enjoyed the fire outside after dinner.  I think I was caught half looking down so that's why my eyes look so odd.  Not because of bourbon slushes! 

We left Maryland on Thursday the 26th and headed back south.  We rented a Yukon for the week and it made life a lot easier on everyone.  Our cars just aren't big enough for the three of us with Mill's condo and gifts etc.  We are thinking about getting a Yukon or Tahoe so this was good for Kevin to drive it.  (I rent them for work all the time)

I have such a fun story to tell you all about of what happened on the way home.  Some of you already know from Instagram.  I still want to post about it because I want it in my "diary!"  Stay tuned!

Friday we got settled back in and I worked.  We had Kevin's parent's over for dinner on Saturday night.  This was after HOURS like six hours of yard work.  Kevin and I worked our lil tails off on Saturday.  We were sore yesterday!  AKA if I never see another tree again, I'll be fine with that.  I hate leaves.

Kendall came over too and played with Mills.  He just layed there and watched her load up his couch with his toys.  He's so good.

We love the new golden retriever pillow we got in Maryland.  The pooch has Christmas lights wrapped around it but I will still keep it out through January.  It's too cute to put away yet.  Speaking of which, our house got completely de-Christmas'ed on Friday.  It was time.

After dinner, Kevin's parents dropped us off at a place in Waxhaw.  We walked down to SouthSiders and listened to a live band.  They were really good. 

Yesterday was a rainy, football kinda Sunday.  Necessary!  Chat soon friends!

Merry Christmas from Mills!

Christmas Happenings

Here are some pictures from my iPhone the past few days!

Front seat rider.  He likes to perch up there on the center console.

Site visit in running clothes with Mills and Kevin.

My best boys on the bay bridge/tunnel.

Soft shell crab sandwich at Stingrays.  Stingrays is at the back of an Exxon gas station but this was GOOD!

One of my bestests from growing up had her baby girl baptized at church yesterday.  Her sister also had her baby boy baptized.  Very nice service!  Their family had us all to their home afterward for a get together to celebrate.

Dinner at EVO with my parents.  Best deviled eggs ever.

And we did a beer tasting.

Mills likes to lay on his Poppa!

Hope you all are ready for Christmas!  Can't believe it's in two days!

Five on Friday - Christmas and More

Linking up with April and Christina for a Christmas edition of Five on Friday!

ONE - Mills loves speaking with his grandparents over FaceTime.  This night he watched the train go around and around their tree.  It was way too cute!

TWO - I don't ever want to forget our first Christmas tree. Our skirt is from fabric I got at Mary Jo's but the skirt I've been wanting finally went on sale at Pottery Barn and is on our way to us.  It'll be exciting to put it out next year!  We also learned a lot about getting a tree.  Next year we'll get a taller one and we'll take a SUV to get it instead of it riding on my car and hoping it doesn't fall off!

THREE - Charlotte airport is always decked out!  A tree of poinsettias.  

FOUR - my nieces all went to The Polar Express in the North Carolina mountains last weekend.  I love the pictures I got sent!  How cute are the three of them?!

FIVE - We have family Christmas with Kevin's family tonight and we're really looking forward to that!  Let the festivities begin!